Loved To Death
by blueberyice
Summary: Recently orphaned, Ariana arrives at Hogwarts to begin a new life. Friendly moments with Harry & more violent ones with Draco leave her inexplicably confused as to where she truly belongs though the answer seems so obvious. Harry/OC/Draco
1. Chapter 1

**This is sort of an introduction to my story. I really hope you enjoy it.**

**If you have any suggestions, comments, or concerns please let me know!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

It was a peaceful night at Hogwarts. If one listened carefully enough, the faintest sounds of owls hobnobbing in the distance could be heard. All seemed to be at rest inside the school. Even the usual turbulence caused by Peeves was nowhere to be heard.

The only motion took place in one of the girl's dormitories. Ariana, a new student in her 6th year, sat under the covers of her four poster with her wand lit. Her silky brown waves were pulled back into a messy bun. Her delicate figure was bent over a parchment in her lap where she was writing intently. There was a faint smile playing on her lips as she manuevered her quill to create something tangible from the seemingly nonexistant hope she held onto. She wrote..

Dear Diary,

Atlast I can truthfully say that he has noticed me! This morning I was running late because I had to finish the rediculously long paper on poisonous concoctions that Professor Snape assigned us, so I nearly sprinted to Care of Magical Creatures after I was done. As I was heading down the hill towards Hargrid's, I noticed a boy (him ofcourse!) a few paces ahead of me. In trying to catch up to see who it was, I managed to trip on a stone lying on my path and as I fell, I let out a horribly embarassing scream. Upon hearing this, I watched him quickly turn around and a split second later, I was in his arms. He had caught me barely inches from the ground.

I was so shocked by the situation that I blurted out the stupidest remark. Not "You saved me!" or "Oh thank you!" like princesses say when they are rescued by Prince Charming, instead I said, "No wonder you're the seeker for our house". If I had been anyone else, this wouldn't have been a huge mistake, but what are the chances _I'd_ know that he was seeker in the very short time I'd been at Hogwarts?

To my surprise, instead of looking at me suspiciously, he gave out a heartfelt laugh, one that almost made me melt through his arms. Even more surprising was the fact that he was still holding onto me. And as if he could read my mind, he abruptly let his arm fall and asked if I was alright.

We walked together the rest of the way, but instead of enjoying those few precious moments all I could do was feel humiliated.

Maybe tomorrow I will thank him properly for saving me, but I have no idea where I will get that amount of courage from. I can only hope that fate will be a little kinder to me now. It's not like there is much else it can take away from me. I still miss Mum and Pa dearly.

- Ariana.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

**Enjoy!**

Harry walked through the corridor to the dining hall with Ginny. He had skipped breakfast in the morning in order to finish Snape's paper (which was already a day late) and now he was famished. Just as he was approaching the oak doors, he felt something touch his arm and turned to see Ariana.

"Hello Harry," she said. Harry looked at the mysterious girl, her dark eyes had a sad look to them, one that didn't match her shy smile.

He smiled back, trying to make it look as genuine as possible, "Hey there... uh..". _How could I forget her name already, _he thought.

"Ariana. You're new aren't you?" Ginny said, quickly finishing for him. She had caught on to his dilemma and saved him so naturally, as if that was how it was meant to be.

"Um yes that's right," responded Ariana, not sure if Harry had just forgotten her name or if she was just imagining it.

"Well I'm Ginny. Pleased to meet you!" Harry watched as Ginny's face broke into a gorgeous smile. "Why don't you join us for lunch?" _Was it so easy to for Ginny to be happy all the time, _he wondered.

"I'd be glad to," replied Ariana, smiling at Harry. The three of them walked together into the dining hall. Ginny continued asking Ariana questions, while Ariana was more focused on trying to speak to Harry, but unfortunately he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts.

Ariana ate lunch with Harry, Ginny, Hermione, and Ron at the Gryffindore table. _So this is what it feels like to belong, _she thought. It felt like it had been so long since she had talked to her other friends back home that she semed to have forgotten the feeling. Everyone here was being very kind to her and she couldn't remember the last time she'd been so happy. Even Harry spoke to her, and he actually seemed interested in what she had to say.

"How come you only began attending Hogwarts this year, Ariana?" Hermione asked.

"Well now that I've moved here to live with my grandparents, it wouldn't make any sense to continue attending my old school of magic in Canada," she replied.

"Canada!" exclaimed Ron, "I didn't know our kinda even existed there."

"Well ofcourse they do Ron," replied Hermione in a knowing tone, "In fact, witches and wizards are known to inhabit very remote places such as-"

"Who did you live with before?" asked Harry, cutting her off.

"My mum and dad ofcourse," replied Ariana. All of a sudden the sad look in her eyes appeared again, and Harry felt something pull in his chest.

"Why don't you live with them any longer?" he asked softly, though somehow he already knew the answer.

She stared into her hands resting on her lap as she spoke in a slow, measured voice. As if at any moment everything around her could dissolve. "My parents passed away," she said.

"Ariana, what happened to them?" Why he was asking, Harry had no idea. But for some reason he just had to know.

After taking a deep breath she spoke, "One night when I was away at school, our apartment caught on fire while my parents were asleep in it." Her eyes shut, "My grandfather came to my school to bring me home a few days after I had recieved the information. He told me I was crying for now reason. He said my parents never felt a thing... That by the time the fire came, they had already died from the smoke. That they're in a better place now" By now she was shaking so badly, Ariana knew that any moment she would crumble. She had told herself many times that she wouldn't talk about it. She didn't want anyone's pity, but when Harry had asked her, she felt like he had to know.

Ron, Hermione, and Ginny looked at her uncomfortably. Before they could say anything, Harry put his arm around her. As he spoke to her, he was looking past them all into the distance, seeing something that wasn't there. "I lost my parents too, Ariana," he said quietly, "Sometimes.. you feel like you'll never make it through on your own, but then somehow, just before you think you've lost it all, everything turns out to be just alright. Not perfect, but alright."

Suddenly no one else in the world existed to Ariana, only Harry. She looked at him in awe, trying to understand how he had just said the words that were buried in her heart. How could he state so ferventy the facts that she was trying so hard to deny? Then she realized, "It's alright, because you're actually not alone," she whispered. He looked at her for the longest moment, and it was as if time has stopped just for them while the weight of their understanding bound them together.

"I ought to leave now I'm going to be late for Herbology," stated Ginny abruptly in an unusually loud voice as she got up, "It was nice meeting you Ariana."

And just like that the spell was broken, Harry turned to Ginny letting go of Ariana, "Ginny," he said. But it was too late, by then she was already at the oak doors.

"Well it looks like the new girl has joined the Potter fan club! So tell me, what did he use to lure you in? Was it the 'poor orphan' story or the 'I defeated You-Know-Who' bullshit?"

Ariana and Harry turned to see Dracy Malfoy standing behind them. There was something off about him, Harry noticed. It wasn't his clothes, he still wore the best that Diagon Alley had to offer, but it almost looked like he had dressed in the dark. His tye wasn't worn properly and the top three buttons on his shirt were open. He had dark rims around his eyes as if he hadn't slept in days.

"Why don't you go somewhere else to take out your jealousy Draco?" said Hermione angrily.

"How dare you speak to me you filthy mudblood?" Ariana gasped. "Yeah that's right. I bet you didn't know that your new friend here is a muggle born. Didn't.."

"Why don't you just leave!" said Ariana as she stood up to face Draco. _Who was this boy and how dare he insult Hermione? She is such a nice person and now she's my friend too, _Ariana thought_. _"If _you're_ the prime example of a pure blood then I wish I was muggle born as well so I wouldn't be likened to _you!" _Behind her the three Gryffindors watched in shock. Was this the delicate girl they had just met? "Hermione is an intelligent, kind, and lovely girl while you seem like one of the vilest creatures alive!" she added with discust.

Suddenly, the boy drew back. Ariana stopped. Was that hurt she saw in his eyes? She didn't mean to, she just wanted to defend her friends. If possible, Draco looked even more tired. Ariana was about to apologize when Ron said, "Way to go, Ariana!" giving her a standing ovation, catching the attention of others around them.

Ariana watched as Harry got up and smiled at her. _Okay maybe it was worth it, _she thought.

"Ariana, thank you," said Hermione, with a greatful look in her eye, "That meant a lot, really. I know we're going to be great friends." Ariana smiled but turned back to Draco. He was already gone..

**A/N: How was it? Please review!**


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